


Check My Pulse

by Lunardeityastrid



Category: Batlantern - Fandom, doctor/nurse au - Fandom
Genre: Alternate Universe, Batlantern - Freeform, Doctor/Nurse AU, M/M, hal/bruce
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-28
Updated: 2020-07-28
Packaged: 2021-03-05 23:47:14
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,534
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25563820
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lunardeityastrid/pseuds/Lunardeityastrid
Summary: The whirring of the helicopter blades came to a halt as Hal Jordan set the bird down on the helipad. The Trauma Team of Gotham General waited off to the side. Dr. Wayne, the trauma surgeon, stood in the middle of them, his arms crossed, and raven hair blowing momentarily.
Relationships: Hal Jordan/Bruce Wayne, Shayera Hol/John Stewart
Comments: 12
Kudos: 73





	1. Tachycardia

The whirring of the helicopter blades came to a halt as Hal Jordan set the bird down on the helipad. The Trauma Team of Gotham General waited off to the side. Dr. Wayne, the trauma surgeon, stood in the middle of them, his arms crossed, and raven hair blowing momentarily. 

Hal removed his helmet, not caring to fix his matted hair, and slipped out of the front. He moved around to the back of the helicopter, opening the door for his partner, John Stewart, to push the gurney out of the cramped space. Hal could never understand how his six foot one-two hundred and ten pound partner could fit back there and never complain about being uncomfortable. 

"How's she holding up?"Hal asked in regards to the patient. One hand pulled on the gurney, the other reached up on her wrist to find the shallow pulse. 

"I think we got her here in time."John stepped down and tossed his helmet in the empty space before closing the door behind him."The rest is up to Dr. Wayne."

Hal nodded. Dr. Wayne was one, if the only, best trauma surgeon in Gotham. His rate of survival was higher than the patients he had lost. They rolled the gurney to the trauma team who took over-holding the i.v bag and rechecking her vitals. Hal and John followed Bruce through the cold hospital corridor as John hopefully gave him enough to work with. Given the small window they had, using diagnostic tools was out of the question. Hal had merely flown this time, so he tuned into what John was saying. 

"Multi-collision car crash. Damage to the C4 and C5 vertebrae and possible hemorrhaging in the lower left abdomen. I was unable to raise her BP above 90." 

It seemed like Dr. Wayne grasped the idea, he thanked them, before rushing off into the emergency surgery room. Hal and John agreed between each other to wait around, that was if they had time. Most times, they waited around to see how their patient was. They didn’t care if they knew the person. It made a difference for them to just be there, to maybe be the first face their patient saw upon waking up. As hard as they tried not to, they counted how many patients they were able to help save and how many they weren’t. It gave them small victories to celebrate and a reason to keep as a team. Right now, the ratio was decent enough to keep them in this line of work.

It was a horrible pile up on one of Gotham's busiest interstates. Five people ejected from their vehicles and two dead on arrival. Hal and John were called in for the victim who took the worst of the impact and somehow was still hanging on. The hospital that was nearby and would only take an ambulance five minutes, wasn’t equipped for emergency surgery. Or in other words, the head surgeon was off playing golf and couldn’t be reached by phone. When they loaded the patient up, John left the flying to Hal. Hal had flown fighter jets as part of his Air Force rank and John trusted no one else to fly. John would always say to Hal before take off, “You fly her straight, I’ll keep ‘em safe.”

They were standing in the lobby-a sad white and green waiting area with one vending machine that didn’t work-, the news on the tv was covering the crash site. The roads had been closed off for nearly an hour. Crews were having a hard time moving the wrecked cars out of the road way and sweeping up debris. The good thing was that all the patients were in the hospital by now. 

Hal was leaning over one of the chairs, his heart in his throat. In the five years that him and John had been working together they had seen some of the most horrible things. But this time, there was nothing they could say to each other. Some incidents sucked the life out of both of them.

Hal and John both came from military backgrounds. John was a Marine unlike Hal, he didn’t know his way around a helicopter unless it was to jump out of it. Hal already had field medicine under his belt. By the time he came home, the first job offering for him was to take a seat in one of the life flight helicopters. When him and John became partners, there was no static. They became some of the closest friends at work and outside of it. 

The surgery began to go late in the night. John settled into one of the chairs telling Hal to wake him if they get called. Hal was on his way back to the lobby with a cup of coffee, his flight suit unzipped a little, exposing his button-up underneath. Dr. Wayne had just left the operating room. His pale blue eyes found Hal’s and immediately his stomach dropped. Hal figured it was bad news, there was no smile on Bruce’s face. But then again, Hal never knew him to smile. Hal braced himself. Though he encountered these things and often had to inform families, it never made it easier. 

“You’re patient made it off the table.” Bruce pointed to John.”Whatever he did, saved her life.” 

“That’s good to hear. John’s the best co-pilot I could ask for.”Hal let out a deep breath. 

“I’ve never seen flight nurses hang around until surgery was over.” 

Hal shrugged, looking down in his coffee to stir around the creamer, before looking back up at Dr.Wayne.”It’s just something John and I do. The worst ones-It gives us a piece of mind to know we’re a part of something bigger.” 

“I can understand that.” Hal could have swore he saw Dr. Wayne’s lips twitch in a small smile. The overhead speaker sounded, calling for Wayne to report back to surgery.”Duty calls.” 

Hal smiled, watching him walk away. This wasn’t the first time Hal felt he had the pleasure of running into Dr, Wayne. Each time they brought a patient, Dr, Wayne was there and Hal would gawk a little bit too much. Most times he would have to let John do the talking or he would get tongue-tied. But Hal knew better, despite what he felt in his chest, it was not going to happen. Both of them were living their own lives. Dr. Wayne, no doubt, was busy the majority of the time. Plus, things had to be strictly professional between them. The last thing Hal wanted was to lose a patient because of his own childish crush. Hal figured there was no harm in imagining, though.

“You’re so obvious, Hal.” John’s groggy voice broke his train of thought. Hal snapped his head in that direction.

“What?” 

“You know what.”


	2. Flatlining

Hal placed two new rolls of gauze in the med-bag located behind his seat. Last time was John’s turn to restock, now it was his. Either way one always doubled checked after the other. The last thing they wanted was to have a critical care patient without the necessary items. He went back to the small checklist he made and ran his fingers down it, seeing that every item had been added. John was a little less calculated. He would simply grab two of each item and place it in. There was no such thing as being over prepared. 

Over the course of two days, Hal and John responded to a patient who suffered extensive burns to his body during a house fire. Rather than Gotham General, the patient had to go to the burn unit in Metropolis. From what they heard, he was going to make a partial recovery after several skin grafts. 

The small victories. Hal reminded himself. 

John came out onto the helipad. Hal noticed the look on his face.”We need to go on standby. I hope you have everything in there.” 

Hal nodded, he climbed inside the helicopter and switched it on. Soon the blades spun, sending his hair flying. He found himself yelling so John could hear him”What’s the situation?!” 

“Thirty-two year old male. Cardiopulmonary Infarction risk. He’s being transported to Gotham General for immediate surgery. The hospital is preparing him for travel.”

One the man reached Gotham General, the surgeon would enter a balloon into his carotid artery to relieve pressure and lower his risk for a heart attack. Hal figured it sounded simple enough. His mind wondered for a split second if Dr. Wayne would be over the surgery. But Hal had to keep his thoughts on one thing only; keeping the patient alive.

Him and John suited up, pulling their flight suits on over their button-ups and black slacks. They climbed into the helicopter. Hal nestled his helmet on his head and tested his mic with John. He ran through a quick systems check before lifting up off the ground. John used the GPS to send Hal on the coordinates. It was a small hospital about ten minutes to get there, and it was still quicker than an ambulance. There was no chance that that hospital had the capabilities to take care of a heart surgery. Gotham General was the largest hospital in the city and not to be biased, some of the best doctors worked there. 

Hal set the helicopter down, waving to the two nurses standing off to the side. The nurse with the patient made their way to the helicopter. Hal jumped out to help them lift the gurney up into the narrow space. They told John the patient was stable, very responsive, and currently on a beta blocker, which would keep his heart rate slow. If anything it sounded like a simple transport. Hal checked with John if he was ready to take off and John gave him a thumbs up. 

“You fly her straight, I’ll keep ‘em safe!” 

He closed the door back and climbed into his seat, a smile on his face. They sure did make a good team. Hal eased his joystick, lifting off once again. Once he was steady in the air, it was a straight shot.

They were less than four minutes from the hospital when John’s voice broke out over their channel. Prior to that, he had his mic down, talking to the patient and contacting the hospital about arrival time. Despite the words John said, Hal didn’t hear any hesitation or panic in his voice.

“Don’t fall asleep on me.”Hal could hear the heartbeat monitor lose it’s pace.John paused.”CPR in progress at...13:01”

Hal couldn’t lose his focus. He heard his partner counting out.”What happened?” 

“He complained of chest pain prior to a sudden spike in heart rate then a rapid decline. He flat lined seconds after.” 

“Do I need to land somewhere?” 

John didn’t respond. Hal fought the urge to panic . He worried John wasn’t going to be able to accurately do CPR in that small space. 

“John?” 

“How long do we have till we arrive at the hospital?” John began to pull apart velcro and an automated voice cut in and out. Hal figured he was taking out the defibrillator to get a normal rhythm again. Hal checked the GPS system on the other side. 

“ETA two minutes.” 

“Make it to the hospital, Hal.” 

Hal pushed the joystick, forcing the helicopter to go a little bit faster.

The blades hadn’t stopped spinning by the time Hal made it to the rear door. The moment the landing skid hit the concrete and Hal cut the engine, he jumped out. He pulled it open in hopes to switch places with John. Doing CPR for two minutes was extensive and after a while became exhausting. John moved out of the way, Hal got on top of the gurney and continued to push hard and fast against the man’s chest. A nurse from the hospital made her way over, taking Hal’s end of the gurney. Her and John moved through the corridors. Dr. Wayne was following alongside, pumping the information from John. Hal was so focused on his compressions that he blocked out the rest of what was going on. The only thing that went through his head was that he didn’t want to lose his patient. This was someone’s son, someone’s brother, or father maybe, relying on him. Hal refused to let up. 

But his stubbornness didn’t help him this time.

Soon he felt hands on his elbows, keeping him from doing his chest compressions. Hal looked up to see Dr. Wayne shaking his head.”It’s too late. I have to call it.” 

Hal couldn’t say anything. He looked at his hands.”I can keep trying.” 

“Jordan. He’s suffered too much brain damage from a lack of oxygen. If you somehow manage to bring him back, he’ll be nothing more than a vegetable. He’s dead.”Dr.Wayne waited a beat.”I’m sorry.”

Hal blinked, not quite sure what he felt. He didn’t know the man but he felt like he failed him. He tossed his leg off the gurney moving off the patient. He noticed that John had already stepped out. Hal looked back at Bruce before leaving the room. It all seemed to go downhill way too fast. 

This wasn’t the first patient Hal had lost, but it felt like it. There was something so unreal about it. Hal kept wondering if maybe he had landed on a roof somewhere and helped John out, they could have saved that man’s life. He stared out the windows in the lobby. 

John had stepped out to call Shayera and to give Hal a moment alone. John and Shayera had been together for two years. The light she brought in his life was enough to take the load of off work. Hal knew John was grateful for her. Unlike Hal, John left the room earlier on to make space for the Code team, who took care of any patient who suffered a heart attack and needed resuscitation. He didn’t know Hal had to be told to quit. John was familiar with that. There was a different kind of pain that came with knowing you were close but just not close enough.

Hal noticed the figure approaching by the reflection in the window. Dr. Wayne, his white coat hanging over blue scrubs and a stethoscope around his neck, came bearing the gift of two cups of coffee. He handed one to Hal. They stood in silence for a few minutes. 

“You tried, Jordan. You have to give yourself credit for that.” 

Hal didn’t respond. He sipped his coffee. 

“He suffered a massive heart attack. There was damage to both sides of his heart. I don’t even think I would have been able to save him.” 

“There could have been something more that we could have done.” Hal said softly. 

Dr. Wayne placed his hand on Hal’s shoulder.” You did what you could.” Hal glanced over at him, he forced a smile. As much as Hal shouldn’t have, he found a comfort in Dr. Wayne’s touch. He had to force himself to not reach up and cup his hand. And yet, his eyes found Dr.Wayne’s hand, who took the look as a bad sign. He dropped his hand and tucked it back against his side. 

Thankfully, John came around the corner, sliding his phone back into the pocket on his flight suit. Hal felt relieved that he didn’t have to stammer through saying how it was okay if he wanted to touch him, that it wasn’t like Hal minded it. He realized he couldn’t say that anyway. Dr. Wayne took the opportunity to turn to John and tell him what caused their patient’s death. John found it easier to take it with a grain of salt. He knew, far better than Hal, that they had to be prepared to help the next patient regardless of what happened to the current one. 

Dr. Wayne was paged off again. John turned to gaze out the window with Hal.”You plan on going out tonight?” 

“Wasn’t planning on it. Why?” 

“No reason.”John shrugged. Hal crossed his arms over his chest as he looked at him. There was a reason. Hal just didn’t figure it out at first. He noticed the stupid smirk on John’s face.

“What?” 

“Real nice of Dr. Wayne to bring you coffee.” 

“Oh, stop. He was just being nice.” 

“Then where’s my coffee?” 

“You weren’t over here.” 

“I swear you and him are hopeless. It’s obvious that both of you like each other. Think about it this way Hal, you could use a distraction. Especially after today.” 

Hal had definitely learned that life was short. He was only four years younger than his patient. He eyed John again, a sincere look on his face. Hal couldn’t believe he was going to listen to John, when it came to his love life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (I love writing this and ended up having so many outside ideas) 
> 
> This gave me the biggest excuse to flex my medical knowledge. Haha. I'm sorry. ;D(I tried to be some what accurate but I think I was off about the balloon method.)


	3. Sinus Rhythm

Dr. Wayne could be found nestled into the corner of the hospital cafeteria, his focus set on a stack of papers in front of him, a pencil pressed against his temple. His food was untouched, laying on a plate, on the opposite side of the table. The cafeteria had been vacated much like the rest of the hospital. The only other people were the cafeteria crews cleaning up from dinner. 

Hal crossed in front of the door, peeking in to see him, twice. This was easier when he had a reason to be at the hospital. After him and John got off and the next shift took over, John continued to pester him about going to ask Dr. Wayne out on a date. Hal gave in saying he would if it meant it was no longer a topic for discussion but also because he was curious about what Dr. Wayne would say. That was how he ended up in the hallway, reconsidering what he was about to do.He tucked his hands into the pockets of his flight jacket and finally entered the cafeteria. Dr. Wayne hadn’t looked up yet, whatever he was doing had his full attention. Hal went over to the table, his hand on the back of the chair. 

“Want some company?” 

Dr.Wayne glanced up. He smiled and gestured in front of him before sliding the untouched food over.”Please.” 

Hal watched as Dr. Wayne stuck his papers into a vanilla folder and placed his pencil on top.He turned back to Hal, giving him all his attention.“I’m glad I found you before you left.” 

“I practically live here. Is...everything okay?” 

“Oh. Yeah. I’m fine.” 

“That’s good. John?” 

“He’s good. Out with his girlfriend.” Hal bit his cheek.”What were you working on?” 

“Just some files that needed to be updated. You know, patient medications and upcoming surgeries.” Dr.Wayne then filled Hal in on the few surgeries he did today. Two of them were successful but the last one was going to require a follow-up operation. Hal could see how passionate he was about his work. His passion was what made him so talented. 

Hal didn’t want to keep tiptoeing around. He thought about how earlier Dr. Wayne must have thought he didn’t feel the same, when he dropped his hand off of Hal’s shoulder. Or maybe Hal over analyzed that situation. 

Then he worried about tossing it out there too quickly and getting rejected. If Dr. Wayne rejected him then future patient pickups and transports would have been awkward. Out of all the times Hal came into this hospital and ran into Dr.Wayne, he realized that maybe John was right, that maybe Hal was completely oblivious to the constant small talk and kind gestures. Dr. Wayne had remembered all the small things Hal had told him and even if the patient wasn’t his, he would come by and greet Hal at least once. Hal could have busted out in laughter seeing just how equally they gawked over each other, how in love and absent minded they both were.

It made it a little easier for Hal to proceed with asking. ”Listen, I don’t know if you’re free anytime soon but if you have the chance, would you like to go out with me sometime?” 

There was a smile on Dr. Wayne’s face as he stood up. Hal continued to ramble, thinking things were going for the worse, that he had actually overthought everything and confused it for something that didn’t exist. 

“But if you don’t want to, I get it. We’re both busy and you’re probably-” 

“Hal. I’m free right now.” He shrugged.

Hal smiled big. It was a relief to hear that. ”Dr. Wayne. I think you’re going to have to check my pulse.” 

“Gladly.” Dr.Wayne pressed his index finger and middle finger on Hal’s wrist, his eyes on Hal. Hal titled his chin up to better look at him. Dr. Wayne moved in, keeping his fingers on Hal’s wrist, and pressed his lips to Hal’s. Hal kissed him back. When Dr. Wayne pulled away, he said.”115, a little fast.” 

Hal couldn’t wait to tell John he had been right.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (I've finally finished something with more than one part???) 
> 
> Anyways, that's a wrap. I had a hell of a time writing this. (I wouldn't be surprised if I end up writing separate parts later on.) 
> 
> Thanks for reading!

**Author's Note:**

> I have been thinking about this au for three whole days now and I have finally started writing it. 
> 
> (Also this gave me an excuse and inspiration to add in John.)


End file.
